Former nursing home worker says facility performed bra check

A former upstate New York nursing home worker has accused her employer of sexual harassment, alleging the facility forced her to prove she was wearing a bra at work.

Karen Tenney, a dietary aide, filed a $9 million federal lawsuit against Essex County, the Horace Nye Nursing Home, the county attorney and Civil Service Employees Union. A county attorney said the suit is "without merit."

Tenney claims a supervisor at the nursing facility in April placed a hand on the back of her sweater to feel for a bra clasp. When the supervisor couldn't find the clasp, Tenney said she pulled up her sweater to show her bra. Others inside the dietary unit followed her action, lifting up their shirts and showing their undergarments. Tenney said that, as a result of the incident, she has suffered mental anguish and needs anti-anxiety medication.

Nursing home officials say the check was prompted by a complaint that Tenney was not wearing a bra, which would have been in violation of county policy, according to a published report.